I have a KA counterdepth fridge with a standard depth base cabinet (24" in deep) and wall cabinet (12" deep) on one side and a pantry cabinet (24" deep) on the other. A 24" deep cabinet is over the fridge. We ordered the panels that surround the fridge a bit deeper, and then bumped out the over-the-fridge cabinet to be flush with those. There were several advantages to this ... the granite overhang on the base cabinet could butt up against the deeper fridge cabinet rather than hanging in mid-air, there are a couple of extra inches in the back of the fridge for ventilation, the sides of the fridge are completely hidden in the cabinet, and there is a bit of extra detail in the crown moulding where the fridge cabinet meets up with the pantry cabinet (rather than just a straight line of moulding across the front).

Thanks jellytoast. So how deep total
Is the fridge cabinet? Does it overlap the doors slightly or do you still see the gasket exposed?

The fridge cabinet is 26 inches deep. Right now the gasket is exposed, but that may be because there was a service guy here the other day who pulled the fridge out a bit to replace the door. There is room for the fridge to be pushed in where the gasket is not exposed and the doors would still open freely.

Make sure that you have enough height for your fridge to slide in when you order your upper cabinet. I stressed over getting the right size, then finally ordered it slightly smaller than I thought I needed, and used a filler stip to fill in the gap.

Thanks! Is the space also 36" wide?

The outside opening is 36 inches wide. Standing in front of the fridge, the fridge panels measure 1 1/2 inches wide, but that measurement is for the face of the panels. The panels behind the face are 3/4 of an inch wide. So, the panels and the face of the panels make an L-shape. If you pull the refigerator out of the space, the side of each panel is indented 3/4 of an inch. This also allows for additional ventilation on the sides of the refrigerator. Kitchenaid specs require ventilation on all sides of the refrigerator and this installation allows for the ventilation without a lot of visible space around the refrigerator.

Great timing with your question katy lou, as I'm about to order my KA this week and need to decide between 72" or 69.5" models (SxS due to right wall restriction).

I have 36" w x 27" d x 72"h space for the refrigerator planned, including the amount needed for top ventilation. I'd like to switch to a 72" h KA but can stay with 691/2"KA or other model at 70" if the top 24" cab can't be raised a little. Above the refrigerator cabinet is base moulding into which the tall crown moulding is attached, then up to ceiling of 102".

I wonder if the installers can up the cabinet a 1/2" and adjust the crown a tad lower as it attaches to the base moulding. Have questions in to GC/cabinet builder.

Surprisingly, I see only pictures on the KA install manuals, not a lot about venting requirements.

I can't recall if the specs said anything about needed ventilation at the back of the refrig, though they did say that it was needed at the top and at the sides. I figured a little extra space at the back couldn't hurt in that respect and I didn't want to have the issue of the refrigerator sides showing. My sister has a counter depth KA but did not bump out her fridge cabinet and the sides of her fridge stick out a little from the opening.